Since I started to cover K-pop for Allure in 2017, I've interviewed approximately 66 idols — and counting. Through our conversations backstage or over the phone, I've learned that beauty, specifically skin care, blurs language barriers and gives us common ground. I may not know how to hit a high note while body rolling like Monsta X's Kihyun or even Chung Ha, but at the end of the day, we all wash off our makeup and dive into an extensive skin-care routine. Many beauty terms are exactly the same in Korean as they are in English, like lotion, serum, and cleansing foam.

About halfway through our chats is when things started getting weird. K-pop stars began sharing the incredibly unexpected secrets to their clear, poreless skin, such as cleansing with contact lens solution or applying products with specific fingers. Keep scrolling to find out more about their decidedly odd skin-care techniques and go-to products — all in one place.

Momoland's JooE: Apply Products With Only Ring Fingers

Before performing at KCON LA, the members of Momoland, starting with JooE, broke down the weirdest parts of their skin-care routines for Allure. JooE demonstrated how she applies every single product solely with her ring fingers. This gentle touch typically is recommended for eye cream application, as your ring finger places the least amount of pressure on the most delicate part of your face. But for JooE, her entire face is treated with the same care.

EXID's Hyelin: Vaseline Is All You Need

EXID's Hyelin streamlined her skin-care routine down to one single product: Vaseline. "That's about it," she explained when I sat down with her backstage at KCON NY in June 2018.

"She's just born with absolutely great skin," fellow EXID member Jeonghwa added after seeing the shock on my face. Vaseline can help clear cystic acne, but I would never rely on it as my sole skin-care product. More power to Hyelin, though.

Astro's Rocky: Cleanse With Contact Lens Solution

When the translator told me backstage at the K-Expo that Rocky washes his face with contact lens solution, I had to take a couple of seconds to let the Astro member's disclosure sink in. I looked to him for reassurance. "Contact solution?" I asked. He nodded his head in approval. Turns out, his mom passed down the unexpected tip to him. "I'm just doing what my mother told me to do," Rocky said. "So when my mother's not looking, I'm always passionately doing an extensive skin-care routine." Dermatologists don't endorse this tip, as contact lens solution can cause skin irritation and redness, so I don't suggest following Rocky's lead on this.

Dreamcatcher's JiU: Slap on a Potato Sheet Mask

Among the several sheet masks that spotlight a single ingredient, like tea tree, pomegranate, and rose, the thought of reaching for one made with potato never crossed my mind until Dreamcatcher's JiU brought it up at KCON LA. While chatting about our favorite K-beauty trends, she mentioned she's really into potato sheet masks. "They help to soothe and brighten skin, so when it's hot outside, a potato sheet mask is really helpful," she said. Unfortunately, U.S. e-retailers don't stock the potato variety of The Face Shop and The Saem's sheet masks, but you might be able to find them at your local K-beauty store.

Monsta X's Shownu: Apply Products With Three Fingers

During a backstage interview, Hyungwon held up three fingers and revealed that Monsta X's leader, Shownu, applies skin-care products with only three fingers. He doesn't have any fancy reasoning for why he does, like gentleness or promoting lymphatic drainage. Instead, "I don't like getting the product all over my hands," Shownu explained.

Momoland's Jane: Spritz on Face Mist Before Cleansing

Before taking off her makeup, Jane likes to spray on a face mist. Typically used to set makeup or give skin a midday dose of hydration, I'd never thought of face mist as a makeup remover until the Momoland member brought it. Jane's tip even inspired fellow member Nancy to try it, too.

Astro's Sanha: Combine Vinegar with Water for a Face Wash

Contact lens solution isn't the only odd thing members of Astro wash their faces with. Moonbin explained during the same interview that Sanha dilutes vinegar with water and then washes his face with the concoction. Sanha later admitted he hasn't seen a change in his skin since incorporating the pickling ingredient into his routine, so I'm not going to take my chances with it either.

Chung Ha: Washing Your Face Three Times in a Row Is Key

Chung Ha isn't a face wipe kind of girl. To cleanse her face, the soloist goes through a multistep process that prefaces the rest of her extensive skin-care routine. "Even if you put so many good products on, there's no use if your skin isn't washed thoroughly," she told me over the phone.

Patting — as opposed to rubbing — on your skin-care products is commonplace in Korea, but as Monsta X's I.M. told me, that's too delicate a term for the way Kihyun applies serums and such. "When I see him, he's not patting his face," I.M recalled. "He's slapping his face, and it makes a huge sound." Minhyuk even started hitting his neck to mimic the noise Kihyun makes.

Slapping is Momoland's Yeonwoo's preferred application technique, too. She swears it keeps her from getting blackheads and blemishes. "From what I've heard, if you wipe products onto your face, they absorb into your hands," she explained. "But if you pat them on, they absorb into your skin and deeper."

KARD's Jiwoo: Cover Your Face in Dampened Cotton Pads

Cotton pads aren't just for removing makeup and swiping on toner. They also double as a makeshift sheet mask. "Because it's so dry in Korea in the winter, I like to make a quick pack," KARD's Jiwoo told me when she visited the Allure office in 2017. "You wet cotton pads with toner and place them all over your face. Instead of opening a new sheet mask, it's a way to get quick hydration." And Korean cotton pads are so much better than the ones you find at the drugstore in the U.S. They are thicker and more absorbent, so they'll stick to your face like your favorite sheet mask.

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